'Sons of Anarchy' Alum Ron Perlman Starring in Mob Thriller

By Michael Hein

Actor Ron Perlman has joined a promising new production that will bring him back into the crime drama genre. According to a report by Deadline, Perlman has joined the cast of Thug, a mob movie starring Liam Neeson. Fans of Sons of Anarchy will be excited to see Perlman playing a character on the wrong side of the law once again. Perlman was one of three actors added to the cast of Thug this week, along with Yolanda Ross and Daniel Diemer.

The movie is directed by Hans Petter Moland, and is reportedly filming in Boston, Massachusetts now. It stars Neeson as an aging gangster trying to reconnect with his children and atone for his past mistakes. However, it turns out to be harder than he expected, as the world of crime won't let go of him as easily as he expected. It's not clear what role Perlman, Ross or Demier will play. The movie was written by Tony Gayton and producers include Roger Birnbaum, Michael Besman, Mark Kimsey, James Masciello, Matt Sidari and Mitchell Zhang.

Perlman is a busy man judging by his list of upcoming projects, so it's surprising he managed to fit another movie in so soon. His next upcoming movie is Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, which will debut in select theaters next month before it goes worldwide on Netflix. He provides the voice of the fascist bureaucrat Podesta. Perlman also recently worked with del Toro on Nightmare Alley.

Perlman also has a role in Poker Face – an upcoming series from Rian Johnson that remains mired in mystery. The show wrapped filming this month but is still slated for release in 2022 according to the latest updates. It is a "case-of-the-week" mystery dramedy starring Natasha Lyonne, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and several other A-listers.

Perlman has no less than eight projects in post-production at the time of this writing, including the highly-anticipated Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. This will be the first movie in the franchise not directed by Michael Bay, and it will introduce the Beast Wars characters from the franchise who transform into animals and monsters rather than vehicles. Perlman will have a central role as Optimus Primal, the leader of the Maximals, but the movie will reportedly tie into the existing Transformers film continuity as well. Peter Cullen will reprise his role as Optimus Prime.

Needless to say, fans will have plenty of chances to see and hear Perlman on their screens in the months to come. However, those interested in Thug will have to wait for more news. Pinnochio premieres in November on Netflix.

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